The 23-year-old Detroit resident says he was at a gas station near Greenfield and 7 Mile earlier this month when a man verbally and physically assaulted him for standing too close in line, repeatedly calling him "a f***ing homo."

Alesna, who says his eye socket was shattered, shared his story on YouTube a day after the attack, describing how the man shouted gay slurs and punched him in the face twice -- all while bystanders laughed and a clerk refused to call the police because he didn't want to deal with the mess.

"Better Made chips and Combo bags that were scattered on the floor were more important to this man than my life," he said in the video. "That's a sad day."

Justin, whose video has generated more than 14,500 page views in the past nine days, ended up reporting the attack himself later that night, and authorities reportedly are taking the case seriously.

March 17, Detroit Free Press: Alesna said he has been told FBI agents have possession of surveillance video from the gas station. Sandra Berchtold, a spokeswoman for the FBI Detroit office, confirmed Wednesday that the agency, which handles hate crimes, is investigating.

The Detroit City Council discussed the attack Tuesday, calling it an abomination. Council President Charles Pugh said he encouraged Detroit Police Chief Ralph Godbee Jr. to track down the attacker.

Alesna said Detroit police asked him to make an identification during a lineup Tuesday night, but he was unable to do so. He said he was told later one of the men may have been a witness to the assault.

Towards the end of his video, Alesna explained why he decided to share his story, referencing "It Gets Better," a project started by columnist Dan Savage that aims to inspire young gay people facing harassment that life does, in fact, get better.

"The hate stops now," Alesna said. "Or at least it needs to stop. The only way that it gets better, the only way that we can assure that s**t like this doesn't happen, is by standing up, is by speaking out, is by actually doing something to try to make our society better."